A vehicle struck pedestrians near a mosque in north London early Monday morning, causing several casualties, police said.
London Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said on Monday morning that the incident was "another appalling attack on our city", and that there was an "ongoing investigation by our Counter Terrorism Command to establish why this attack was carried out".
The Finsbury Park Mosque gained notoriety more than a decade ago for sermons by radical cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri, who was sentenced to life in a USA prison in January 2015 after being convicted of terrorism-related charges. Neil Basu, the Senior National Coordinator for Counter Terrorism, said that that Londoners should remain united amid what was now being treated as a terrorist attack.
The Islington borough of North London, of which Finsbury Park is a part, is home to a large Muslim community.
People could be heard shouting and screaming amid the chaos and bloodstains were visible on the pavement.
"This was an attack on Muslims near their place of worship", she said in a televised address.
Amateur video footage showed at least three people on the ground in the aftermath of the attack, with one man receiving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
On Fridays, worshippers can be seen heading to and from the several mosques in the area.
In a statement Khan said, "While this appears to be an attack on a particular community, like the bad attacks in Manchester, Westminster and London Bridge it is also an assault on all our shared values of tolerance, freedom and respect". Police said earlier that one person was arrested.
May attempted to counter that feeling in her speech, declaring that police arrived at the scene within one minute, and that it was classified as a possible terror attack in eight minutes.
British Prime Minister Theresa May says her thoughts are with all those injured after a van rammed into worshippers leaving a mosque.
Lincoln Islamic group offer thoughts and prayers for Finsbury Park attack victims
London Mayor Sadiq Khan released a statement early Monday calling the incident "a horrific terrorist attack". Earlier this month, three extremists who launched a terror attack on London Bridge were killed by officers.
The Muslim Council of Britain confirmed that worshippers had been targeted in the attack.
- Residents in Finsbury Park had criticized authorities for not declaring the incident as terrorism soon enough, and police only publicly announced they were treating it as terror more than eight hours after the event.
Muslim Council of Britain secretary general Harun Khan condemned the attack and also urged calm. He has been taken to hospital as a precaution and will be taken into custody once discharged.
Vanzella said she saw police put a man into a police vehicle and take him away, but she didn't see them arrest him.
Even if investigators end up asserting that the incident was not motivated by Islamophobic beliefs, the community's anger is unlikely to simply disappear.
Eight people were killed and dozens more were injured in the attack, which began shortly before 10pm local time on 3 June.
The 32-year-old told the Press Association: "There were a lot of people in the street, crossing the street, going to mosque for prayers, for forgiveness, just to pray and go home and eat".
The attack comes during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan when Muslims were attending special prayers.
(AP Photo/Tim Ireland). A van is seen near Finsbury Park station after the vehicle struck pedestrians in north London, Monday June 19, 2017.
On May 22, a suicide attack killed 22 people and injured almost 60 after an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester. "My prayers are with the victims and their families", read the statement.
The man, who did not want to be named, said: "The gentleman went straight down this road, people were just conversing, talking, just doing what we're doing".
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